Advise on adrenals and illness please. - Thyroid UK

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Advise on adrenals and illness please.

kiltis profile image
14 Replies

Hi all.

My adrenals had been in a reasonably good shape, producing correct amount of cortisol during the day and tolerating 3.5 grains of NDT well.

I then switched to T3 and it seemed to work well but unfortunately Christmas was stressful and I contracted a virus. After two weeks of illness my health went downhill.

My adrenal back pain came back, I developed insomnia and started waking up at 3 am and could not go back to sleep. Oh and my anxiety came back too.

I started back on adrenal support and cut back on T3 but I can still not sleep and that makes the adrenal problem worse.

I think the virus has gone now but I still feel awful.

It's hard to know if the virus/lack of sleep/stress did all this or if not tolerating T3 had something to do with it as well.

I have stopped T3 completely for a few days and don't know if I should let the adrenals get better before starting back or if I should do CMT3 or perhaps even go back on NDT.

Any advise?

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kiltis
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shaws profile image
shawsAdministrator

In Dr Skinner's view (RIP) he said that if you were on enough thyroid gland meds that the adrenals sort themselves out. Dr Peatfield has the opposite viewpoint. He himself has hypo and has been in hospital recently.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barry...

He also studied here:-

brodabarnes.org/

It is difficult when you pin your hopes on a particular medication and then it goes haywire.

I hope you feel better soon.

kiltis profile image
kiltis in reply to shaws

Thanks for your reply Shaws.

Heloise profile image
Heloise

I thought T3 was also support for your adrenals. I don't think I would ever stop T3. Your body needs it and where will you get it? If you stopped NDT because of being T4 toxic or unable to convert (which appears likely if you needed to take 31/2 gr.), that is no reason to stop taking T3.

kiltis profile image
kiltis in reply to Heloise

I have some production, albeit small, but I think you are right. I have taken a small dose of T3. Have also started a saliva test I had lying at home. I'm pretty sure I'm low in cortisol again but want to be sure.

Heloise profile image
Heloise in reply to kiltis

I hope you are doing better, kiltis. I am curious if your T3 only dose was equivalent to the T3 in your 3 1/2 grain dose of NDT, which would be almost 100 mcg. That is pretty high. Vitamin D levels are very important and infections can be a sign of deficiency. If you aren't supplementing, it may be something to check out.

kiltis profile image
kiltis in reply to Heloise

Thanks Heloise, I am doing a little better. I resorted to sleeping pills last night and my partner slept next to our little one (she wakes me several times a night) so I got some sleep.

When I started T3 (monitored closely by checking my BP, pulse and temp) I found that I could build up to 150 mcg with no adverse effect.

Then I got ill with fever, sore throat and muscle ache.

My pulse and heart rate shot up. I thought I had strep throat because family members had it, but when I finally got the doctor to do a swab test it was free of strep but full of candida. This was about 4 weeks into being ill.

I worried that my adrenals couldn't tolerate so much T3 in the state they were/are in.

My vit D levels are good, 119 nmol l and my ferritin and b12 are good too.

Heloise profile image
Heloise in reply to kiltis

The only thing I can think of at the moment is the "pooling" of T3 in your blood. Have you heard of that? While we think of T3 as a very useable form, it can pool in the bloodstream instead.

Of course, candida loves sugar in any form and may have killed off good bacteria in your gut so a probiotic might help restore some balance.

kiltis profile image
kiltis in reply to Heloise

Thank you very much. I will look into it.

I think my body was so run down by being ill candida just took over. I take probiotics and eat low carb normally but I did have sweets one day at Christmas. Naughty me.

Heloise profile image
Heloise in reply to kiltis

Awww, naughty is good once in a while.

kiltis profile image
kiltis in reply to Heloise

Hehe, yes :-)

I've had an other night of almost undisturbed sleep and added back a little more T3 and I'm feeling so much better, phew.

Thanks for your help. I think my cortisol went low and therefore the T3 pooled - just like you said.

Heloise profile image
Heloise in reply to kiltis

Wonderful news, kiltis. Did you have a baby recently? Pregnancy can have a huge impact on thyroid but I am still concerned if you need 150 mcg of T3. I'll try to find the article regarding very large doses of thyroid replacement but in the meantime, this doctor is very interesting.

youtube.com/watch?v=U15Pcov...

kiltis profile image
kiltis in reply to Heloise

Thanks, will have a look.

I had a baby 3 years ago and I started getting ill a month later. Had typical adrenal fatigue symptoms but didn't know that at the time. I've had hypo symptoms since I was teenager but always low TSH and T4 in range. Private test shows T3 is in range too.

I suspect I have thyroid hormone resistance or Hypothyroidism type two.

Heloise profile image
Heloise in reply to kiltis

I've been posting these 5-min. videos from this doctor of functional medicine. I think he is correct about the auto immune issue regarding Hashimoto. This one might be very close as it is all about T3 resistance and insulin resistance.

youtube.com/watch?v=HPm-zg7...

kiltis profile image
kiltis in reply to Heloise

Wow this is so interesting. I will have my testosterone checked.

My blood sugar (I check it regularly because my mum has diabetes type 2) has always been good but I do have excess hair growth. I've never had any problems with Pco's, irregular periods or infertility though.

There is so much to learn.

Thanks again, Heloise.

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